Gov Gaidam challenge UNIMAID on Boko Haram

Gov. Ibrahim Gaidam of Yobe on Tuesday challenged the University of Maiduguri to conduct research on the phenomenon of Boko Haram extremism to guard against future occurrences.

Gaidam gave the challenge when a fund raising committee for the university’s convocation ceremony visited him in Damaturu.

The governor, who announced a donation of N30 million to the institution, said “we expect the university to think in terms of mounting academic programmes to reduce or prevent violent extremism’’.

He urged the university to expand the research to cover “socio-economic and psycho social intervention projects in response to the humanitarian crisis’’.

Gaidam also challenged Islamic scholars within and outside the university to face the “misguided and misleading presentation of Islam to the younger generation as propagated by the insurgents’’.

The governor said his administration had invested much in the state-owned university and education generally.

“This investment has yielded dividends because the university scored 100 per cent in its first accreditation exercise.

“A total of 29 academic programmes were presented for accreditation, 27 programmes were granted full accreditation, with interim accreditation granted to the other two,’’ he said.

Gaidam also said government sponsored 173 students for postgraduate courses, supported 582 self-sponsored students in African and European countries while, 400 medical students were placed on GL 07 salary.

Prof. Haruna Godowoli, Chairman of the committee, said the university had great consideration for the state as a major stakeholder of the institution.

“I am glad to say that 80 per cent of Yobe’s workforce are graduates of the university, and we have been in partnership with the state university to contribute to its growth,’’ Godowoli said.